Museum owner accused of stealing Indian artifacts in Idaho, Nevada

IDAHO FALLS -- A Twin Falls area museum owner has been indicted for allegedly stealing more than 1,200 Indian artifacts from federal land and defacing archaeological sites.

The grand jury indictment alleges Jerry Lee Young dug up Indian artifacts on public lands and archaeological sites in Owyhee County; the Sawtooth National Forest and along the Snake River; and Elko County, Nev.

Jean McNeil, spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Boise, said Young could be the first person in Idaho to be charged with stealing artifacts from public lands. Young operates the Idaho Heritage Museum off U.S. Highway 93 near Hollister.

"There have been cases elsewhere, but we believe this is the first here," McNeil said.

Young's attorney, Harry DeHaan, disputes the government's claims. He said Young dug up most of his collection before the Archaeological Resource Protection Act was passed in 1979. And he denies Young concealed the artifacts because they are on display at his museum.

Young has been fighting the government since investigators seized part of his collection three years ago, and they have not shown any proof of illegal activity, DeHaan said.

"It frankly looks to me they're trying to build their own collection with Jerry's artifacts," he said.

Taking such items on public lands without permission has long been outlawed, said Lynn Murdoch of the Idaho Museum of Natural History in Pocatello.

The 1979 law spells out more clearly and lists punishments if someone is caught stealing them, but the government has tried to preserve them since 1906, when Congress passed the Antiquities Act, Murdoch said.

It is important people do not take artifacts from public lands, she said. Proper excavation ensures no other valuable clues to ancient cultures are destroyed or overlooked.

"A lot of people just want the pieces, and they discard a lot of useful information that could tell us how people lived," she said.